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Experimental Persistence Probability for Fluctuating Steps

D. B. Dougherty1, I. Lyubinetsky1, E. D. Williams1, M. Constantin2, C. Dasgupta2, and S. Das Sarma2

  • 1Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-4111
  • 2Condensed Matter Theory Center, Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-4111

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 136102 – Published 6 September, 2002

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.136102

Abstract

The persistence behavior for fluctuating steps on the Si(111)-(3×3)R30°-Al surface was determined by analyzing time-dependent STM images for temperatures between 770 and 970 K. Using the standard persistence definition, the measured persistence probability displays power-law decay with an exponent of θ=0.77±0.03. This is consistent with the value of θ=3/4 predicted for attachment-detachment limited step kinetics. If the persistence analysis is carried out in terms of return to a fixed-reference position, the measured probability decays exponentially. Numerical studies of the Langevin equation used to model step motion corroborate the experimental observations.

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 136102– Published 6 September, 2002
  • Received 26 December 2001

© 2002 American Physical Society

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